Bangladesh to overhaul Railway Lines for Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant

DHAKA: Bangladesh is undertaking a project to lay a new railway line and is modernizing the rail line between Ishwardi and its first nuclear power plant that is under construction at Rooppur in Pabna district.

The project entails 26.52 km-long rail line. Out of this 9 km line will be constructed afresh and the rest 17.52 km existing line will be converted into dual-gauge rail-line.

Member of the Socio-economic Infrastructure of the Planning Commission Kamal Uddin Ahmed said at the ECNEC meeting that the project will introduce “safe, fast, and goods-laden rail service” for the RNPP project.

The project also includes, constructing a b-type railway station, 13 level crossing and 7 box culvert along with purchasing and establishment of the computer-based color light signaling system.

The Ministry of Science and Technology has taken the project of constructing and renovating the rail-way track and signaling system at an estimated cost of Tk 335.97 crore (USD 40.37 million). The project has already been approved by the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) and is expected to be completed by 2020.

The project includes constructing a b-type railway station, 13 level crossing and seven box culvert along with acquisition and setting up of a computer-based color light signaling system.

Secretary of the Science and Technology Ministry Anwar Hossain said that the RNPP project is among the government’s fast-track projects. “The railway line will facilitate faster and efficient transportation of goods and machinery to and from the RNPP site,” Hossain added.

The Railway Line amongst the several infrastructure development projects that have been undertaken by the Bangladesh Government with a view to support the construction of the RNPP.